Last year chanteuse Inara George released An Invitation, her lush collaboration with legendary arranger, lyricist, composer and singer Van Dyke Parks. After the largely positive--though slightly muted--reaction to that collection, Inara went back to the drawing board and has just issued a digital solo collection of related sketches and reinventions.
Inara (who's also known as the fairer half of neo-twee duo The Bird and The Bee) will be showcasing Accidental Experimental, her kinda-DIY companion piece to An Invitation, next Tuesday at the Bootleg Theatre.
You know whenever you go to the ER (because you probably can't afford insurance and the ER is your primary care) there's always an interesting mix of doctors there and while you wait the standard seven hours to get someone to write you a prescription for antibiotic drops for your pink eye you start fantasizing about what their lives must be like once they take off the scrubs and, you know, chill? And you see an exotic young woman with interesting hair and you think to yourself, "I bet she's a doctor by day (and the nights she's on call) but the rest of the time she is a sultry songstress in a ragtag world music combo who plays dusty, wood-lined rooms where the smoking ban might be flouted, and they kind of sound a little like Pink Martini and a little like Manu Chao, but less yuppie-dinner-party like."
Next Sunday at McCabe's Guitar Shop in Santa Monica a veritable constellation of roots music stars will be paying tribute to one of their own: much-beloved fiddler, all-around strings virtuosa, singer and songwriter Amy Farris, who passed away in Los Angeles last September.
Dave Alvin, Stan Ridgway, Peter Case, I See Hawks in L. A. and other surprise guests will be performing in honor of the Austin native, their friend and collaborator
Cover for the show is a suggested donation of $10, with all proceeds going to Amy's charity of choice, Hungry For Music, a non-profit organization whose mission is "to inspire underprivileged children by bringing positive musical and creative experiences into their lives through musical instrument donations, concerts and workshops."
McCabe's is encouraging fans to bring "a favorite photo, item, or note to post on the memorial bulletin board for viewing. Items left will be put into a scrapbook for Amy's family."
L.A. life teems with tough choices. Do you stay on the freeway or take surface streets? Do you go to grad school or just try to marry rich? Pinkberry or Yogurtland? Kogi or Nom Nom truck? And not to mention, what do you wear to Hearts of Palm UK at Spaceland tonight? O-M-to-the-effing-G, WTF, f'reals. What do you do?
Fashion-forward future pop
Luckily Erica Elektra, lead songwriter from the smart, streamlined synthpop trio, has made life a little bit easier with these five fashion suggestions delivered exclusively to West Coast Sound.
Advice by Elektra
1. Everybody knows that feathers are the cool thing nowadays. And who doesn't like birds? Why not get yourself over to Michael's craft store, get some feathers and a glue-gun and be creative? I'd love to see some feather headdresses in the audience.
(Four more fashion tips after the jump and videos, MP3s and freshly googled pix from Ms. Electra)
Tonight R. Kelly will be bringing his always amazing variety show to the Nokia. If you've never seen Kells live with a packed audience of his fans, you really should. The man is a powerhouse, old-school performer and his faithful, very responsive fanbase is almost as entertaining as what's going on onstage. (Note to the ironic Internet people and frat types who discovered R. Kelly through the "Trapped In the Closet" videos and the Chappelle Show parodies: leave your preconceptions at the door and be prepared to be blown away by a true showman.)
Black Yodel #5
Kells has just released "Echo," the new single from his much-delayed next album Untitled (allegedly dropping December 1st, but we never know), which we are sure he'll be performing live tonight.
The song features the customary masterful storytelling ("I called your boss and he knows you ain't coming in today/ so baby girl pack a bag and head to my place/
and when you get there don't stop, don't hesitate,/ I left the keys so let yourself in, baby./ Now drop your bags pull yourself a drink/ I left your next clue by the sink/ it should be a box with your name/ open it up see what's inside/ whatever it is, put it on/
and head to the bedroom..."), but it also features what we believe is a first in contemporary RnB: yodeling.
After telling his beloved that he'll give her an orgasm that will have her echoing, and that he'll get her "sounding like you're screaming from a mountain peak," Kells proceeds to illustrate with some impressive yodeling skills that would put Heidi to shame.
(Video with evidence of R. Kelly's yodeling chops after the jump)
To promote "True of False," the latest single from their months-old Grrr... album, Bishop Allen did what any clever bunch of average-looking, expensively-educated beardos from Brooklyn with Calexico-style horns and a stand-up drummer would do: draft your Bobbie-Gentry-lookalike girlfriend (now wife) to sing lead and surround her with shimmying and frugging scene girls sporting neo-Sixties dos and vintage minidresses. Then make a cheap black and white video on a bare soundstage claiming it's an hommage to Ed Sullivan or something when you know full well this is the kind of Spike Jonze/McSweeneys wet dream that would play like porn in Silver Lake, Williamsburg and all places inbetween housing twentysomethings who mostly shop organic at Trader Joe's.
Nicely played, dudes. (The tune's not bad either.)
Darbie Nowatka Rice and her Golddiggers of 2009
Bishop Allen (with Throw Me the Statue and Darwin Deez) will be playing the El Rey the Echoplex [Ed.'s note: last-minute change of venue] next Tuesday, 11/10, most likely with chanteuse and dancers in tow.
(Brand new video for Bishop Allen's "True or False" after the jump)
Hey brides! We know you've been preparing your wedding for over a year, that everything is just like you imagined through your princessy girlhood, and that you've successfully altered yourself so you don't have to alter the Vera Wang. Still, wanna make your "very special day" even more special? How about hiring the guy who wrote the lyrics to "Bela Lugosi's Dead" to be your wedding DJ?
That's right--David J., bassist for Bauhaus, founding member of Love and Rockets and honorary Angeleno--is available through his website "in both his capacities as musician and DJ," helpfully clarifying that "weddings and Bar Mitzvahs are not out of the question!"
David will be unavailable, however, on December 8th, when he will join Flea, "Weird Al" Yankovic, Michael Penn, and others for Black Francis' "Winston Calling: A Rock & Comedy Benefit" for the treatment of ailing toddler Winston Bertrand at the Echoplex.
A lot of important things happened in 2005. Mahmoud Abbas was elected to succeed Yasser Arafat as Palestinian Authority President, George W. Bush began his 2nd term , and dreamy electronica alchemists, Broadcast, played a show in L.A. Four years have passed and a lot of things have changed, but Broadcast's ethereal pop soundscapes have lost none of their luster.
A seance with Broadcast
Now pared down to the two original members, knob-turner James Cargill and impeccably dressed songstress Trish Keenan, Broadcast spreads their psych-pop sound--and 1960's Brit film aesthetic--across the States supporting their collaborative mini-album Broadcast & The Focus Group Investigate Witch Cults of The Radio Age (released on October 26th).
The Birmingham-based group will open for Atlas Sound, the far-out solo-project fronted by Deerhunter's Bradford James Cox.
Bottom line: tonight's show at the Troubadour should be a mind-expanding exhibition of intercontinental psychedelia.
(Broadcast's entire album mash-up, Atlas Sound MP3 and Miscellaneous media after the jump)
Scion seemed to have cornered the market on car companies who wanted to give a little "hip appeal" to their diminutive autos. Now Kia has thrown their glove(boxes?) into the ring with the Soul Collective series, which will present live performances by Crystal Castles and Neon Indian this Thursday. For free!
The digitized dance mayhem will take place at Siren Studios in Hollywood at 7pm , but like most free events RSVP is necessary, and it's first come first served. There will probably be a line so bring your favorite romance novel and read the sexy parts you've dog-eared while you wait.
(Vids after the jump, including the best Neon Indian fan video mashup ever*)
Osaka's greatest all-female Japanese pop-punk pixies, Shonen Knife serve up finely cut slices of throwback rock at the Echo tonight. After 27 years of intercontinental rocking, Shonen Knife have lost none of their signature cutesy, garage-quaking sound. In the '90s they were queens of the alternative scene, gracing MTV's 120 Minutes and recorded tracks for the Powerpuff Girls cartoon. At the Echo tonight, they will shimmy out the slightly Sixties pop-songs from their latest release Super Group, released August 25th.
Do you stay home and practice cat massage, or do you go and get krunkzilla'ed and grind random people dressed as Slim Jims? Search your heart. You know the answer. Of course you can do both at the two dayHARD Haunted Mansion at the Shrine. Yeah, yeah, the last HARD fest was spicer than a Tapatio guy and Cholula girl love child, but the line up is pretty rad. It's sold out at the moment, but using some clever navigation of the internets, or by wearing that Shrine Auditorium Security Guard costume you have, maybe you can get in and get down.
Experience the eight sons of Sun Ra trumpeter Phil Cohran, as they meld the bombast of the experimental jazz era with the groove of the hip hop age. The brothers, who combined are called the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, blast the Echoplex next Friday, November 6 with their unstoppable rhythms culled from a lifetime of music. From playing subway stations and the streets of Chicago to releasing an album on Blur and Gorillaz's frontman Damon Albarn's Honest Jons label, HBE's story and sound have captured the masses. Accompanied by a performance by visionary composer Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, who composed the Timeless: A Suite For Ma Dukes concert (where he directed an orchestra performing compositions inspired by the late legendary producer J-Dilla). With a DJ sets from Madlib wrapping the Hypnotic night, promoters Mochilla are not just throwing a show, they're curating a distinct musical moment.
(Ticket Info, Hypnotic history, and Documentary after the jump)
There's always time to find a new costume for Halloween. But when it comes to planning your Halloween night, it is best to start early. So for those heading down to KCRW's Masquerade Ball at the Park Plaza, here are the set times for Saturday's shindig featuring Sea Wolf, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Little Dragon, and DJ Shadow (DJ set). In addition to these live acts, KCRW DJs will deliver four rooms of jams for ghosts and ghouls. Tickets are still available (as of this posting) and a limited number of walk up tickets can be yours for $75.
Hüsker Dü never received the critical acclaim they deserved back in the 1980s when their hardcore, yet melodic sound paved the way alt rock in the '90s (and beyond). Long after their demise, bands from the Pixies to No Age paid tribute to the Minnesotan band with superfluous umlauts (No Age even played a tribute set with OG Hüsker Bob Mould at All Tomorrow's Parties. But on Nov. 12, Hüsker Dü drummer-turned-solo-artist Grant Hart comes to the Silver Lake Lounge, in support of his newest album, Hot Wax, which features musicians from Godspeed You Black Emperor and Silver Mt. Zion. Hart's gritty, slightly kraut-y rockers mix the noisy clamor of Hüsker Dü with straight forward composition. Stop by the Lounge, shake his and and thank him for playing his ass off for the good of us all.
"It was a big Happening with flashing lights, lots of color, inspiration, 100,000 people screaming along in unison, moved by the pure ... spectacle of it," writes LA Weekly's Randall Roberts of U2's performance at the Rose Bowl last night. Surely, no divine spectacle is complete without dozens of homemade signs expressing your eternal devotion to the band that brought you to the stadium. See below:
U.K. band Brakesbrakesbrakes return to Spaceland tonight for their first show in Los Angeles in over two years. It's not that they don't love us, but Bx3 have been busy. Touring the states with the terribly named--and terribly awesome--We Were Promised Jetpacks and Twilight Sad, in addition to releasing their ecstatic, hook-filled album, Touchdown (and a live album, Rock Is Dodelijk) takes more time than one would think. But they're back. Tonight the band will deliver their carefully measured sound, a delicately balanced concoction of pop-rock structure with just the right amount of edge, to Spaceland's sorta mopey set. Two years is a long time to be away, but you know what they say, absence makes the heart grow fonder.
Bad news: The invite-only Pennywise show tonight in Long Beach has been canceled due to... the police.
Evidently a fistful of Long Beach County Police officers gave the venue owner (a friend of the band's) a bit of sure pressure this afternoon. If the band played the show, the cops threatened they would shut it down. "I think they were just preparing for the worst. Which is probably what's gonna happen at a Pennywise show," said a very calm Pennywise guitarist, Fletcher Dagge, moments ago. Last time Pennywise played a show in Long Beach, "there was an out-of-control turnout," with too many ticket holders who'd arrived on a first come first served basis, and the cops had to "disperse the crowd."
Tonight's show would have been the band's first performance with new singer Zolie Teglas before playing the Cypress Hill Smokeout this weekend in San Bernardino. "He's never sang with us in front of a crowd and we figured it would be good to have a hometown crowd there, just keep it small and have a nice rowdy old school bar show. It's just kinda hard to do that anymore I guess," Dagge said.
The show was intended just for a bunch of friends, with a list of about 250 people. "We didn't tell anybody except for the people on the list." How it got back to the police department is all speculation.
Pennywise hinted that a sneak attack show for tomorrow night, in another city, is on the rise. But we can't tell anybody where...
Well, it happened again. Two great shows on the same night. Maybe it's a travesty of fate, conflicting tour schedules, or maybe your Karma sucks. No. It's all up to you. It's time to answer the eternal question: Who do you love?
Tonight: Mr. Oizo Vs. Spleen United:
Tonight's face off, the French slice and dice electospazz, Mr. Oizo versus Denmark's live-Underworld styled, electorockers Spleen United. As the man whose fuzzy, chopped up electo experiments put France on the music map long before Justice was uttered from mustachioed mouths, Mr. Oizo was the originator. Oizo, a.k.a. Quentin Dupieux, first dropped the dancefloor favorite, "Flat Beat" back in the day (remember the Levi's commercial?), then evolved into an 8-bit-meets-vinyl mauler for 2005's "Moustache Half A Scissor," and now curates avant-house, ceiling punchers showcased on last year's, "Lambs Anger." Flying Lotus, Kavinsky, and Ed Banger would be nothing without Oizo. Find him tonight at the Avalon.
Then there's Speen United, the beloved Danish electro band who made 50k Danes at the Roskilde Festival shake their pølser to their fist-pumping beats. They crushed it back back in June, and slathered Cinespace with their moody energy earlier this week. Tonight, they're undoubtedly going to get the Bootleg theater wiggling in ways only Scandinavians can.
So many choices. Maybe some media would help you decide.
Space Girl and Bunny Man bark, growl and chirp at the maestro as he conducts an audience-turned-orchestra loyal to his every command. "Can you be a wolf," the maestro sings, raising a hand to the rafters, prompting Space Girl and Bunny Man to howl back with the roaring audience's lonesome cry. The pair nods their helmet and ears, respectively, seemingly in approval, as the maestro pushes open his grey suit jacket and sings or suggests, "seems like you can be anything."
Erin Broadley
At the Flaming Lips intimate gig at the Montalban theater in Hollywood, part of MySpace's secret show series, anything seemed possible as frontman Wayne Coyne smashed cymbals, led a raucous revival sing-along, and pontificated on his 26 years fronting the far-out Oklahoma band.
Following in the footsteps of giants is never easy. For Harper Simon, son of the infinitely talented Paul Simon, striking out on his own took decades of work. Harper previously played guitar with U.K. rockers Menlo Park, but tonight at the Echo, Paul's oldest son presents the Americana-tinged, folksy sing-alongs from his self titled debut album released yesterday. The album, produced by Bob Johnston, the maestro behind Bob Dylan's Highway 61 Revisited, burgeons with performances by fine musicians and Harper's record release show brings many of them along. Harper will pack the stage with an esteemed cadre including Russell Simins, Jeff Hill, David Rawlings, Benmont Tench, Farmer Dave Scher, and a horn section.
A trip to the ballet might seem like an activity best shared amongst mothers and daughters on a Saturday afternoon, but last Friday night, the City Ballet of Los Angeles brought the classic dance form to a crowd of hip young adults with their performance of Behind the Red Door at Cicada Restaurant.
Michael Stock is the man and the man behind the man.
Not only has the Part Time Punks DJ earned the highly coveted Best Afternoon DJ from this honorable publication (and reportedly a runner up for this award), but this weekend he curates 48 hours of post punk madness. Bringing in bands and DJs from across reservoir (Silver Lake's) and the pond (the Atlantic), Stock presents a DJ set on the Standard's roof on Saturday and Sunday's main event offers the best Post-Punk this side of 1978.
Saturday:
POOLSIDE PRE-PARTY AT THE STANDARD HOTEL IN DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES, 2-8pm with DJ sets by members of: GANG OF FOUR (Hugo Burnham & Dave Allen),THE GERMS (Don Bolles), PUNKY REGGAE PARTY (David Orlando aka Boss Harmony), PART TIME PUNKS, LTM RECORDINGS (James Nice), ACUTE (Dan Selzer)
SUNDAY: PART TIME PUNKS 2ND ANNUAL FESTIVAL. (Buy Tix)
ABE VIGODA, BLESSURE GRAVE, CHRISTMAS ISLAND, Dave Allen, DAYTIME TELEVISION, KID CONGO POWERS, MEDIUM MEDIUM, RAINBOW ARABIA, SAVAGE REPUBLIC, SHARK TOYS, SPIRIT PHOTOGRAPHY, THE INTELLIGENCE, THE JAZZ BUTCHER, THE SLITS, VIV ALBERTINE, WEAVE
+ guest DJs +
Brendan Mullen (THE MASQUE)
Dave Newton (MIGHTY LEMON DROPS)
James Nice (LTM)
Dan Selzer (ACUTE RECORDS)
Rick Taylor (WE FOUGHT THE BIG ONE)
Check out Michael Stock's Band-by-band break down after the jump:
There was a lot to be expected from Fever Ray's show at Henry Fonda Theater last night, particularly for those of us who had seen Karin Dreijer Andersson's other project, The Knife play at El Rey Theatre a few years ago. Back then, Andersson and her brother performed behind a scrim while donning masks and now, as Fever Ray, she still delivers as much mystery and drama as one would expect from the Swedish performer.
West Coast Sound knows what you want, and we're here to give it to you. As you probably already know, tonight is Har Mar Superstar's record release party at the Echo. He birthed the new album, Dark Touches on Sept. 29th, but tonight he will slather the Echo with his new svelte cuts including an ode to a night in, "Game Night," and his megapop (sure-to-be) hit, "Tall Boy" (a song originally written for Britney Spears). There will be some rolling around, some tighty (sorta) whiteys and a healthy amount of glistening man-sheen upon his belly and brow. But after tonight, how will you commemorate this evening of ridiculosity? With a Har Mar Heartthrob poster, of course! Perfectly sized for your locker, Lisa Frank trapper-keeper, or cubicle wall, this poster is not only a memento of male-pattern radness but it's a promise. Har Mar will rock you.
Jack Peñate's crisply cut pop may provoke that swaying dance move that many moms perform, (sometimes culminating with a clap and hip slap), but his upbeat jams get the kicks a-moving. His Robert Smith-ish voice (and luckily not looks) is melancholic and uplifting at the same time, in that moody way that only Brits can. The Londoner comes to Spaceland tonight with Swedish megapop-producers-turned-electro-pop collective, Miike Snow. Whether it's pronounced "Mike" like Mike Ditka or "Miike" like Takashi Miike, few know the truth, so feel free to ask them tonight. West Coast Sound recommends asking them during their set. Raise your hand and wait to be called on.
If no answer, just execute the "stanky legg" to the best of your ability.
Hollywood Forever after Hope Sandoval and the Warm Inventions
There was no photography allowed in the venue when Hope Sandoval and the Warm Inventions, the band featuring the revered Mazzy Star vocalist and My Bloody Valentine's Colm Ó CÃosóig, played Hollywood Forever last night in a concert marking the release of its latest album Through the Devil Softly. Absolutely none. This rule was stated no fewer than six times on printouts that lined the entrance and parlor room. Perhaps that was for the best. The glare of camera flashes and cell phones pointed toward the stage might have ruined the carefully crafted ambience of the gathering.
Los Angeles is a world apart from late 1970's Manchester, but on Sunday night, Part Time Punks will slather the Echo with Mancunian gloom pop. As a tribute to the legendary Factory records, home to Joy Division, New Order, and Happy Mondays (for more: 24 Hour Party People ), PTP presents a night of post-punk rarities and the mope-rock's greatest hits. From the P.T. Punks:
ALL Factory Records ALL for freaky dancing ALL nite long. Joy Division, New Order, A Certain Ratio, Section 25, The Wake, Minny Pops, Crispy Ambulance, Durutti Column, Happy Mondays, Stockholm Monsters, James, Quando Quango...even Blurt, Abecedarians, Red Turns To, Tunnelvision, Thick Pigeon Biting Tongues and Nyam Nyam. (Hell, this time, I'm even gonna try to drop some Kalima.)
Emo wasn't always a bad word. Before "the Myspace photo," boys with sideswept bangs and half-goth girls began fake crying over suburban life, there was the orginal emos Sunny Day Real Estate, Promise Ring, and Jawbreaker.
These mid-1990s emos chilled out the preachy yelling of emo originator Ian MacKaye and shared fashion sense with the Dick the meek record clerk from Hi Fidelity. Tonight, as emo's godfather, the Get Up Kids, pays a visit the Avalon with Youth Group we present to you a video tribute to original Emo:
There are many bands with exclamation points in their names, but few deserve the firework of the punctuation world more than Slavic Soul Party!. The incendiary New York collective utilizes every in the Gypsy musical arsenal--from tubas and clarinets to accordion and bass drum--to blast forth a conflagration of hyperspeed Slavic floor-stompers.
There's a line in the David Bowie song, "Five Years," that goes, "It was cold and it rained so I felt like an actor," which somehow set a tone for Sunday night's K Records show at the Eagle Rock Center for the Arts. Mt. Eerie performed, and lived up to the sentiment of its name. Atmospheric would be the best way to describe the dreamy lullaby type music, except that Eerie's version is punctuated by moments of off-cuff -- dare I say, heavy metal? -- bridge changes.
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